MU's Best Team on Defense?

[Phantom Warrior]

What is the best MU team you've ever seen on defense? We had a lot of very good defensive teams under Al, under O'Neill, under Deane, under Crean, and under Buzz. Which team stands out for you as the best of the best. What was the starting five on that team and its top two or three reserves?

[Nukem2]

Off hand, I would say the 75-76 team which had all of the 76-77 team plus Walton and Tatum. They gave up 60 points per game which was 5th nationally.

[CaribouJim]

'75 - '76 Team - all five starters played in the NBA and none were close to being stiffs on D. I was too young to remember those Chones/the Dream/Lucas etc teams.

Jimmy Mac and that '94 Sweet 16 team was impressive just from Jimmy Mac alone.

[Markedman]

'75 - '76 Team - all five starters played in the NBA and none were close to being stiffs on D. I was too young to remember those Chones/the Dream/Lucas etc teams.

Jimmy Mac and that '94 Sweet 16 team was impressive just from Jimmy Mac alone.

And Tony Miller.....

[Gato78]

'71-'72 team with Chones, McNeil, Lackey, Allie , Marcus Washington and Sugar Frazier. Al told my Dad that he thought that was his best defense (at that time) because of Chones and McNeil. Allowed them to press without worry.

[Nukem2]

'71-'72 team with Chones, McNeil, Lackey, Allie , Marcus Washington and Sugar Frazier. Al told my Dad that he thought that was his best defense (at that time) because of Chones and McNeil. Allowed them to press without worry.
I would still go with 75-76. The 71-72 team was dominant on offense.

[Phantom Warrior]

The '75-'76 team had four excellent defenders in the starting five.

Bo was possibly the best defensive 4 MU has ever had. Earl was a top-notch defender at the 3. He stayed in front of his man, he got steals, and he got some defensive boards. Butch was one of the best defensive 2-guards I've ever seen at MU. His defense was under-rated because he was so good on offense, but he was surprisingly quick and almost never got beat off the dribble, and he was really strong, so he could prevent even quicker, taller players from getting into the lane and/or posting him up. And Lloyd was the supreme pest. He was so frickin' quick on defense - both his feet and his hands - that he made life miserable for opposing point guards. Jerome was decent at the 5. He was strong, but he wasn't very quick, so quicker 5s gave him trouble.

Then again, any team that has Tony Miller defending at point and Big Mac as a rim protector has two of probably the top five individual defenders of all time at MU. However, Key, while a solid rebounder on defense, had some issues staying in front of his man, as did Robb at the 2-guard. Roney Eford as definitely an above-average defender at the 3, but he wasn't quite in Earl's class.

And then there was also the '73-'74 team that made it to the Championship Game against NC State. Lloyd was at point as a sophomore, while Earl was at the 3. Bo was at the 4 as a freshman, and Luke was at the 5. And Marcus Washington was at the 2. He was inconsistent on offense, but he was a very good defender. That was a young team - one senior, one junior, two sophomores, and one freshman - but man for man, that may have been an even better defensive team than the '75-'76 team as I think the edge goes to Luke at the 5.